Loom side and frame construction



Nov. 29, 1949 w. A. BLANCHARD 2,489,557

LOOM SIDE AND FRAME CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 11, 1947 2 Shets-Sheet 1 Nov 29, 1949 w. A. BLANCHARD 57 LOOM SIDE AND FRAME CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 11, 1947 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN V EN TOR. v

Patented Nov. 29, 1949 LOOM SIDE A ND FRAME CONSTRUCTION William A. Blanchard, Millbury,Mass., assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester,*Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application December 11, 1947, Serial No. 791,098

4 Claims.

The present invention relates to looms, and has for its object the provision of an improved loom side and frame construction which differs fundamentally from the heavy castings that have been heretofore employed for loom sides.

In the conventional loom construction, loom sides, in the form of heavy castings, are employed to support between them, a large amount of apparatus, all of which is made separately, and all of which is attached to one or the other of the loom sides, or to both of them, by means of various supporting brackets and fixtures. When so utilizing cast loom sides, it is well known that the attachment of the-various brackets and fixtures for the associated loom mechanisms requires that each casting be drilled or machined in a larger number of different places. For example, when attaching a given bracket or fixture to a loom side by bolts, the loom side must be drilled, and obviously all of the drilled holes have to be located accurately, in order to support the associated loom parts in proper alignment. This accurate drilling of holes, or the machining of supporting surfaces on a cast loom side, adds greatly to the cost of production of a'loom, particularly when a loom side is used for different commercial types of looms, with varying arrangements of brackets and fixtures.

According to the present invention, there is provided a radically different construction for. a loom side to take the place of the heavy castings or other one-piece constructions heretofore employed. Briefly stated, the loom side construction of the present invention consists of an assembly of tubular members and fittings, such as are employed for piping, with each such loom side assembly being adapted to perform all of the functions of the heavy and expensive castings that have been heretofore employed. As a result of the improved loom side construction of the present invention, the laborious and expensive procedure of accurately drilling and machining a large number of places in a cast loom side is entirely eliminated, since the various loom parts can be accurately positioned on or between my improved loom sides by means of standard pipe clamps or fittings that are capable of ready adjustment.

The above and other advantageous features of the present invention will be hereinafter pointed out in detail in the following description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which 4 Fig. 1 is a view in perspective showing the use of a pair of loom sides embodying the present in-' vention for the support of associated loom parts.

Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation of one of the loom sides shown in Fig. 1, with the associated loom parts removed therefrom.

Fig. 3 is a View in end elevation of the loom side shown in Fig. 2, as viewed from the right in Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a View in front elevation of a complete loom embodying my invention.

Fig. 5 is a detail view of one of the loom side clamps.

As best shown in Fig. 2, a loom side S embodying the present invention, consists of an assembly of various lengths of tubing l, which may be standard pipe, if desired, with the tubing I being connected by various types of standard pipe fittings, such as elbows 2, Ts 3, and 4-way couplings 4. The lengths of tubing I, necessary to produce a large number of loom sides S, can be cut and otherwise pre-formed in large quantities, and a loom side S can be quickly assembled by joining together the lengths of tubing l in connection with the various elbows 2, Ts 3, and couplings 4. The joining of these parts together can be greatly expedited by welding the parts as they are assembled, as indicated at W, although screwthreaded connections can be employed where desirable, or necessary. It is to be noted that when a loom side S has been assembled from lengths oftubing I and the various fittings 2, 3, and 4, the outline of the completed loom side generally resembles the outline of a cast loom side, with certain important exceptions which will be later referred to.

Referring now to Fig. 1, there is shown in perspective the manner in which a pair of loom sides S, composed of assembled tubing and fittings, can be secured together to provide a rigid frame for the support of all the associated loom parts usually mounted between a pair of cast loom sides. In this final assembly of a complete loom frame, the loom sides S are connected across the top of the frame by additional lengths of tubing 5 that are readily connected by elbows 2 to the Ts 3 between which extends a top member 6, as incorporated in each loom side S. These two lengths of cross tubing 5 take the place of heavy top frame members that have heretofore been employed to connect a pair of cast loom sides by separate brackets, and as will later appear, the tubing 5 serves to support the harness mechanism of the loom.

As will also be apparent from Fig. 1, the assembled loom sides S are connected across the back of the loom by parallel lengths of tubing 1, and across the front by tubing 8, that are readily connected to oppositely facing Ts 3 which form part of each loom side assembly, while a heavy angle member 9 serves as a breastbeam. Thus, the two loom sides S are rigidly connected together to provide a complete loom frame, without the use of any extra fixtures or brackets that would be required with the use of cast loom sides, together with the necessity of drilling holes for the reception of bolts to fasten the brackets.

When a pair of loom sides S have been secured together by the cross members of tubing 5, I, and 8, as shown in Fig. 1, it is a simple matter to obtain the mounting of various loom parts thereon, by the use of other standard pipe fit tings in the form of clamps, for example, that may be mounted at various points along the tubing. Obviously, such clamps are capable of adjustment in any one of three directions at right angles to each other, in order to line up the associated loom parts between the loom sides S.

In order to illustrate the manner in which certain loom parts may be mounted between the loom sides by means of adjustable clamps, the warp beam II] of a loom is shown in Fig. 1, with its trunnions II received in bearings I2 attached to vertical lengths of tubing I by clamps I3. As shown, each clamp I3 is adapted to partially embrace the tubing I, and each bearing I2 is formed with a curved portion I 4 also partially embracing the tubing I. Therefore, when the parts are drawn together in clamping relation by bolts I5, the bearings I2 will be mounted on the loom sides S in just the right position to insure that the warp beam II] will be capable of rotation on a truly horizontal axis. Obviously, either bearing I2 can be adjusted vertically on its tubing I by loosening either clamp I3 and moving the bearing upwardly or downwardly on the loom side S until the desired adjustment has been obtained.

Another form of mounting by means of adjustable clamps is shown at the top of the loom frame, in association with the harness mecha nism of the loom. In this arrangement, a series of pulleys I6, for carrying the cables leading to the harness frames, are mounted on a shaft I'I, supported between clamps I8 that are attached to the cross tubing 5 that secures the loom sides together across the top of the frame. The clamps I8 are positionable along the tubing 5 so as to locate the pulleys It in any desired position between the loom sides. Furthermore, with the arrangement shown in Fig. 1, the entire dobbyhead mechanism, associated with the pulleys Hi, can be mounted by means of clamps embracing the top member 6 where it extends between the cross tubing 5.

Referring now to the front of the loom frame shown in Fig. 1, the rocker shaft 19 which carries the lay, is rotatably mounted in bearings 20 that are secured to Ts 3 of each loom side by short lengths of tubing 2!. ment, the bearings 20 can be rigidly secured to the loom sides S by members that support the Weight of the rocker shaft I 9, and the parts thereon, against movement in two directions at right angles to each other.

Fig. 4 shows in front elevation a pair of loom sides S connected together, as previously described, with reference to Fig. 1, to constitute a rigid frame for the support of associated loom parts, some of which have been previously mentioned. It is very evident from a consideration of Fig. 4 how the clamps I8, for the support of With this arrange- 4 the pulleys I6 of the harness mechanism, can be adjusted lengthwise of the cross tubing 5 to obtain exactly the desired location of the pulleys I6 for proper operation of the harness mechanism. The dobby head-motion H is also indicated in Fig. 4 as being supported by the lefthand loom side S by means of clamps 22 embracing the top ,members 5 of the loom side, Where these members 6 extend below the cross tubing 5, as shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 also shows the mounting of clamps 23 on the vertical tubular members I at the front of each loom side S, with the clamps 23 being arranged in pairs to support between them a vertical, bracket 24. The two brackets 24 face each other between the loom sides S and serve to mount between them the usual cloth roll 25, take-up roll 26, and guide roll 21. By shifting the clamps 23 vertically of the tubing at the front of each loom side S, the assembly of rolls 25, 26, and 21 mounted between the brackets 24 can be positioned, as a unit, when setting up the loom to insure the correct functioning of the cloth winding mechanism.

In addition to supporting parts of the loom mechanism which extend between the m sides S, such as the breast beam 9, warp beam II], and rocker shaft I 9, as previously described, each loom side S is also adapted to individually support various other parts of the loom mechanism extending from either side of the assembled frame. For example, the right-hand loom side S, as shown in Fig. 4, is adapted to support the bobbin magazine M by means of a pair of clamps 28 embracing the vertical tubular members I below the cross tubing 5, one of the clamps 28 being indicated in Fig. l.

The usual crank shaft 29 and bottom shaft 30 forming part of the drivin mechanism of the loom are mounted in bearings, not shown in Fig. 4, which bearings constitute parts of clamps 3] embracing tubular members of the righthand loom sides behind the clamps 23. One such bearing clamp 3|. is shown in Fig. l with its associated shaft removed, in order to simplify the drawing. It is obvious that the mounting and adjustment of the shafts 29 and 30 can be greatly facilitated by the ease with which the bearing clamps 3i can be shifted in either direction along the associated tubular members of the loom side S.

As previously indicated, the mounting of various loom parts on the loom sides S is accomplished by the use 'of standard pipe fittings in the form of clamps that are capable of adjustment along the associated lengths of tubing I. One such pipe clamp I3 is shown in detail in Fig. 5 as comprising clamping members, each partially embracing the tubing I, with the parts being held together in clamping relation by bolts I5. In order to insure that the clamp I3 will be held rigidly on the tubing in any position, the clamp also provides a binder bolt 32 that passes through sleeves 33 forming part of the clamp, with each sleeve providing a curved surface 34 to fit the tubing I. The turning of a nut 35 on the binder bolt 32 serves to draw the sleeves 33 together and cause the curved surfaces 34 to closely engage the tubing, and thereby firmly lock the clamp in its adjusted position.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that by the present invention there is provided an improved loom side construction, characterized by the facility with which identical loom sides can be manufactured on an economical basis from various lengths of tubing rigidly connected by various types of pipe fittings. Furthermore, an given pair of loom sides, so constructed, can be connected together, in spaced relation, to form a complete 100m frame by the use of other lengths of tubing cut to give the desired spacing between loom sides. When once the loom sides have been assembled and connected together, various parts of the associated loom mechanism can be conveniently mounted on either one or both of the loom sides, by the utilization of clamping members adjustable lengthwise of any tubular member, for the purpose of changing the position of any loom part.

As a result of my improved construction of a loom side, a complete loom frame can be assembled, and the associated loom parts mounted thereon, without the necessity of drilling and machining operations heretofore required in connec tion with cast loom sides, in order to locate and support the 100m mechanism by various special fixtures and brackets.

I claim:

1. A frame for a loom having a drop headmotion and a harness cord sheave unit, the frame including a loom side made of sections of pipe fastened together and including a horizontal pipe member, vertical spaced pipe sections secured to and extending upwardly from said horizontal member, a second horizontal member above the first member extending between and secured to said vertical pipe sections, a clamp on each horizontal pipe member securing the dobby headmotion to the horizontal members, and horizontal tubular cross members secured to the vertical sections, one for each of the latter, supporting the harness cord sheave unit.

2. A frame for a loom having a dobby headmotion and a harness cord sheave unit, the frame including a loom side made of sections of pipe fastened together and including a horizontal pipe member, vertical spaced pipe sections secured to said horizontal member and extending upwardly therefrom, a second horizontal pipe member above the first member secured to said vertical pipe sections, a clamp on each horizontal pipe member securing the dobby head-motion to the horizontal members, horizontal pipe cross members secured to the vertical pipe sections, one for each of the latter, and clamps on said cross members supporting the harness cord sheave unit.

3. A frame for a loom having a dobby headmotion and a harness cord sheave unit, the frame including a loom side made of sections of pipe fastened together and including a horizontal pipe member having spaced Ts secured thereto, vertical pipe sections secured to and extending upwardly from said Ts and having Ts secured thereto, a second horizontal pipe member above the first member secured to the last named Ts, a clamp on each horizontal pipe member securing the dob-by head motion to the horizontal members, and pipe cross members extending horizontally from the upper end of said pipe sections and having the harness cord sheave unit mounted thereon.

4. A frame for a loom having a dobby headmotion and a harness cord sheave unit, the frame including a loom side made of sections of pipe fastened together and including a horizontal pipe member having spaced Ts secured thereto, a vertical pipe section secured to and extending upwardly from each of said Ts, other Ts, one for each vertical pipe section, secured to the latter, a secondhorizontal pipe member above the first member secured to and extending between said other Ts, a clamp on each horizontal pipe member securing the dobby head motion to the horizontal members, elbows connected to said other Ts, one elbow for each of the latter Ts, and pipe cross members secured to the elbows extending horizontally from the latter in a direction substantially perpendicular to said members and having the harness cord sheave unit mounted thereon.

WILLIAM A. BLANCHARD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 20,773 Switzerland Dec. 14, 1899 24,882 Great Britain of 1899 27,104 Great Britain of 1904 

